Page 55 of Cam's Treasure

While I enjoyed taking care of them outside the bedroom, I could tell this was Micah's domain, and I had no problem with that. I'd happily follow any and all orders Micah gave me.

Once he was done, he leaned over and dropped the cloth on the floor. Before he could think about it, I took his hand and pulled him between Cam and me.

"Come on, princess. Time for a cuddle."

Princess, huh? It suited Micah. He was pretty and sweet, but also powerful and commanding. Yeah, princess was just the right nickname for our mate.

Micah slid in between us, and Cam threw an arm over him, his palm resting on my hip. After covering us with a blanket and turning off the lights, I did the same, cocooning Micah between us.

Twenty-Three

Micah

It'd been two weeks since the three of us were intimate for the first time. While I hadn't physically participated, I'd still enjoyed it, mostly because it'd helped me lose the last of my hesitation.

I'd had an epiphany as I'd sat in the corner of the guestroom watching Cam and Ember together: they needed me. Whether they acted like it or not, they were both eager to be told what to do, and I'd enjoyed making them. Cam hadn't even needed to push me this time. It'd come naturally to me.

The way they'd both glanced at me even when they were wrapped up in each other had assured me that I had a place with them, that I'd never be left out. I'd realized that my insecurities were just that, and that I couldn't allow them to come in the way of my happiness.

I was finally ready to be all in with my mates, even the one I had yet to meet, and I owed it all to Cam, because he'd given me the time and space I needed to do it without ever pushing me.

Which was why Cam and I had come up with a plan for today. A plan that would make sure Ember knew how important he was to us, and how much we'd grown to adore him in the short time we'd known him.

"He's here!" Cam raced to the backdoor, sliding it open just as Ember shifted into his human form. One of these days, I wanted to ask Ember to stay in his phoenix form so I could admire and explore every inch of him, but not today. Today, we were on a mission, and I couldn't let anything distract me.

Damn, it had taken more than ten years, but I'd finally started thinking like Cam. He'd be so proud.

"Hey." Ember greeted Cam with a kiss, his thick arm wrapping around his waist, then glanced at me as I approached. His lips were soft and warm as I pressed mine to them, and I hummed softly, sliding my fingers into his hair so I could pull him close. I loved how long and silky his hair was.

"Hey, Ember. How was the flight?"

"Nothing special. I did see a nest full of baby birds, though."

Cam chuckled, and I shook my head as we led him back inside. It was just before noon, and Ember headed straight for the kitchen, completely at home as he started removing utensils from the cabinets and veggies from the fridge.

A week ago, he'd spontaneously shifted into his phoenix form in the middle of a kiss and startled the hell out of us, but other than that, there had been no other symptoms of his end-of-cycle process, and we'd settled into something of a routine.

We chatted as he cooked, helping with the prep work and leaving the cooking to him since he enjoyed it, and it'd become such a routine over the last two weeks that I fell into it easily, loving the comfortable ease of it all.

Once lunch was ready, we moved to the small, cozy dining table, and the whole time we ate our meals, my thoughts kept returning to our plans. How would Ember react? It wasn't too soon, was it?

I might've taken a few peeks into Ember's mind—I had his permission, but I still tried not to do it if I could help it—but I hadn't heard any kind of hesitation or doubts from him. He was all in, just like Cam, just like I was now.

After lunch, we started putting our plan in action.

"We want to take you somewhere. It's one of our favorite spots," Cam said as he led Ember to the car, and I followed behind him, locking the door behind us.

Jodi and Saaya were curled up on the couch as usual, and we'd left more than enough food for them. If everything went right, we'd be home in a couple of hours anyway.

Cam drove, and I told Ember to take shotgun since our car was tiny—we'd bought it before we met Ember, and in hindsight we should've picked something bigger, especially since we knew we'd have two more mates at some point—and he needed the leg space. I wondered what our final mate would be like. Would he be shy or outspoken? Big or small? Magical or human?

Now that I'd decided that I was ready, thoughts like that kept popping up in my mind, and I finally understood how Cam had felt.

At the docks, Cam parked the car, his eyes sparkling with excitement as he met my gaze through the rearview mirror, and I smiled back at him, excited about what we were going to do. It was a big step, after all.

Getting out of the car, I turned to Ember, whose eyes roamed over the docks, taking everything in.

The Silent Creek river—why someone would put 'creek' in the name of a river, I didn't know—was calm at the moment, the water moving gently as boats bobbed in their designated spots.Cam had asked once if we should buy one of our own, but neither of us really spent much time in the water, so I'd thought it would be a waste.

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